Senate restrains anti-terror spending

December 09, 2001|By Jill Zuckman, Washington Bureau.

WASHINGTON — In a major political victory for President Bush, Senate Democrats abandoned their efforts to boost spending to defend the nation against terrorism by billions more than Bush had requested.

The Senate passed the $318 billion defense appropriations bill by voice vote early Saturday. Attached to it was an additional $20 billion for homeland security needs such as stockpiling vaccines, securing the borders and rebuilding New York City.

The debate over spending was largely a political one, with Democrats trying to embarrass Bush by giving him $15 billion more than he had requested.

Bush maintained that the government could not spend so much money so fast and that his administration would assess the needs and request what is necessary by early next year.

The president congratulated the Senate for passing the legislation, saying it "honors the agreement I reached with the Congress and resists unnecessary non-defense spending."

"We have ensured the funding necessary to recover from the Sept. 11 attacks and to protect and defend our homeland," Bush said.

Democrats had argued that the nation is vulnerable to attack on multiple fronts, from the food supply to its ports of entry. They said terrorists would not wait for a new fiscal year to begin, and neither should the federal government wait to defend its citizens.

"It defies logic for this country to be in a state of national emergency . . . and then be told to wait until next spring to provide these monies for homeland defense," said Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.).

But Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) said the Democratic argument never caught on because most Americans understood that Bush would ask for more money when it is needed.

"It was obvious this was just a political scheme," Lott said. "I just don't think their case was believable."

Shortly after terrorists hijacked four airplanes and crashed them into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania, Congress approved $40 billion for the president to rebuild and to fight terrorism at home and abroad.

Congress gave Bush $20 billion to spend as he wished, while lawmakers were to prioritize how to spend the second half. It is that second half that resulted in controversy as Democrats sought to increase the amount.

Administration officials said only $6 billion has been spent so far.

The new plan shifts about $7billion that Bush wanted for defense to domestic security programs and to help New York and Washington recover from the Sept. 11 attacks.

Also included in the $318 billion defense spending bill is a 5 percent increase in military pay.

Last week, the House of Representatives approved a $20 billion package for domestic security needs.

The House and Senate must now resolve differences in the way each chamber allocated the money before a final bill can be sent to the president for his signature.